Rocking Chairs

"The most comfortable wooden chair I've ever sat in!"

Colin Eden-Eadon, Editor of "Furniture & Cabinet Making", Britain's premier furniture making magazine. This is what Colin had to say after sitting in the chair I exhibited in England for "Chairs 2004"

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You have reached the home of the Hal Taylor Rocking Chair. Chairs made with love, care and a careful eye for matching the grain in the rocker so that the completed chair shows natures work as well as my own. Before the first cut is made in the wood for any rocking chair the board is carefully studied in order to bring out the grain in such a way as to facilitate a consistent "repetition of form" throughout the completed rocking chair.

In my completed rocking chairs, the grain in the arms matches, the front legs match, the headrest echoes the grain in the seat and all of the back braces are matched, front and back. If you turn the chair upside down you would find that the bottoms of the rockers match perfectly.

Paying attention to these small details brings a completeness to my rocking chairs that is seldom found in other chairs. Sitting by themselves the chairs seem "contented" in their balance and symmetry. My greatest influence in woodworking has been James Krenov.  After reading his first book A Cabinetmaker's Notebook  my view of woodworking changed from "What can I make out of this wood" to "What can this wood and I make together." I will forever be grateful for his enlightened, giving approach to the craft of wood.

As many would surmise I have also been influenced by one of my favorite people, Sam Maloof. When I first saw one of Sam's rocking chairs I realized that a comfortable rocking chair could also be a work of art. Sam has been instrumental in bringing the craft of woodworking to new levels, changing the perception and attitudes of consumers the world over. And in so doing has made it possible for thousands who love woodworking to make it their living, not just their dream.

Click here to see Hal's Rocking Chairs